Between The Devil And Her Deep Blue Eyes
by RiverPond20
Summary: "Ymir" He was in front of her on a high pedestal, his horns flaming. She was a demon known for planting murderous intentions into human minds, she'd put dark thoughts into their minds, she's watched families suffer. But what happens when a demon gets a heart and maybe a second chance at life? M for dark themes and Lemon in later chapters YmirxChrista AU
1. Ymir

She stood in the fiery courtroom; demons and monsters heckling, growling, and cursing at her. She stood there all alone; fighting the tears in her eyes.

"Ymir" a stern voice echoed. He was in front of her on a high pedestal "You stand before me, accused of breaking one of our sacred laws" his horns flaming. He waited for a response.

Her mouth was dry. She fought for words to plead, but not one sound escaped her lips.

He huffed "As a demon, it is your job to see to it that eventually everybody dies. Everybody has a time. You're one of my most esteemed assassins, I thought I had put you on a job that ranked far lower than your skill level but now I'm not sure what to think"

She hung her head. Tears fell to the hot floor, evaporating as they dropped due to the heat of the Underworld. He was right, on the scale of things, she was a demon known for planting murderous intentions into the minds of humans, she'd put dark thoughts into people's minds and watched as they tied ropes around their own necks, she's watched families grieve and suffer due to her cold touch… and she did it all without a second thought.

The last assignment she was placed on was relatively simple; it didn't require her mind games or malice tongue, all she was required to do was push….

"Don't you have anything to say for yourself!" he was growing impatient

"No"

He sighed "Nothing at all? No excuse for your actions? Or be it lack of? You let someone live!"

"No" she looked him in the eye "I am aware of what I've done and fully accept my punishment"

He closed his eyes and massaged his temples in frustration "Ymir, my child" he looked at her "I can't tell you how it disgusts me to even look at you. You were weak. Weak with the life of a little human girl!"

She stood her ground "I understand the implications of letting someone live! I deserve to be punished!"

He sat back and thought for a moment "Fine" he said calmly "Ymir, you're sentenced to a life above. The human relm, where you must find and kill this girl as a human, be tried as a human, sentenced as a human and die a human"

She gritted her teeth in an attempt to fight more tears.

"Bertholdt, Reiner, strip her of her wings and tail"

Suddenly she felt something she hadn't felt in over three centuries; pain. The two demons ripped her black bat-like wings into pieces before tearing them from her shoulders and finally yanking off her tail.

"Good-bye, my child" he said to her before suddenly everything went black.

…..

FLASH BACK!

"I can't believe I've been placed on a job as simple as this shit!" She huffed as she flew to the roof of an apartment block. "I've killed presidents! Missionaries! I've caused deaths of high status and now he wants me to push some princess off a building!?" She landed on the roof of her destination and glanced at her count-down timer watch. She sighed "Any second now she'll burst through that door and make her way to the edge. She'll look over, contemplate it, then before she has a chance to change her mind, I'll strike and it'll be nap time for sleeping beauty" she said to herself.

Like clockwork, low and behold, the girl burst through the door. Her face filled with tears. Ymir got a look at her.

Her blond hair stuck to her tear ridden face. Mascara running down her cheeks as she made her way to the edge. She looked over.

Ymir flew in front of the short girl. She couldn't explain the feelings that overcame her. She examined the girls face with a knitted brow.

"She's no older than fifteen" she said to herself as she looked at the girl. Despite her look of trauma and hopelessness, there was a small twinkle in the girl's eye.

Ymir felt as if her heart was only beating for the first time. She felt the blood in her veins run warm. She hovered in front of the girl with her mouth slightly open.

The girl took a deep breath before clamping her eyes shut and taking a step.

She felt nothing.

She slowly opened one of her eyes "Huh?" followed by the second one.

She was leaning over the edge of the building at an impossible angle "What the?"

Ymir was holding the girl.

"Don't you dare" she whispered into the girl's ear as she pushed her back.

She fell onto her backside on the roof "Huh!" The blond stood up, obviously scared and confused. "W-who's there?"

"Shit" Ymir mouthed frozen to one spot. She was lucky that demons were invisible to human sight but they could still be heard and felt.

The girl looked around frantically but found no one and got no reply. She hurried back towards the door ran down the stairs as quickly as her feet could carry her.

Ymir breathed a sigh of relief. She placed her hand over her heart. It was beating quite rapidly. She smiled. She had never saved anyone's life before, although then again, no one had ever made Ymir ever feel that way before; a feeling like nothing else mattered, like someone had granted her a wish she didn't even know she wanted. She was happy, that girl made a demon happy, and that's all Ymir could think about.


	2. Christa

Christa opened her eyes. She stared at her white ceiling. She sighed and threw the covers from her before stepping into the bathroom. She examined her face; pulling, poking and prodding at it, and sighed again.

"Christa! Breakfast!"

…

She went down stairs fully dressed.

"Morning, Sweetheart" her mother said as she stood over the stove.

Christa grunted in reply before plonking herself onto a stool around the island in the centre of the kitchen.

Her mother turned around with a plate of bacon, eggs and toast "Why are you dressed?" She asked "I thought you like to stay in your pyjamas on Sundays"

"I did" She said as she scoffed down the food.

Her mother was caught off guard by her use of the past tense "Alright" she said sceptically before turning back to the stove with a cloth in her hand "The new neighbours are coming over for dinner"

"Mom, they've been her nearly a year, you don't have to call them 'new' anymore. The Jaegers moved in across the street a few weeks ago and you've already adjusted to their name"

"I know but their name is so hard to pronounce! I can never remember it! Kristine... Kris- thyme… Kris"-

"Kirschtein" Christa corrected.

He mother sighed "Why couldn't they have a simple name, like Ackerman or something"

Christa shovelled her breakfast into her mouth.

"Christa" her mother started "Are you feeling alright lately?"

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" she said with a mouth-full of food, not taking her eyes off her plate.

"Well, you've been spending a lot of time alone lately. Sasha's mom told me that you haven't really been hanging out with her lately. Sasha's really upset about it"

"Is she?" She swallowed a mouthful of chewed bacon.

He mother sighed "She's worried about you, _I'M _worried about you"

Chista didn't listen as she swallowed the last morsel of her breakfast and chugged down her orange juice.

She stood up and grabbed her bag "See ya!"

"Wait where are you going?" Her mother asked

"Out" she shrugged before quickening her pace towards the door

"Christa"

"I won't be back for dinner, sorry!" She opened the door.

"Christa!"

She closed the front door behind her and ran down the street. When she was far enough away she stopped and sighed. She looked back "Sorry, Mom… Good-bye" and began running again.

….

"Christa! What took you so long" Annie sighed as the girl ran to meet her.

"Sorry, had to get away from my mom"-

Annie scoffed "Stupid Bitch"

-"But I'm here now. We can go"

"That depends"

"Depends on what?" Christa asked

"How serious you are about all this. There's no going back"

"I know" Christa was stern.

Annie examined her face "You leave a note?"

"Aye" she nodded

"You said all the things we agreed on?"

"Yes" The young girl never faltered.

"Good" She showed no expression "Let's go. Sawney and Bean are waiting"

….

Christa followed her fellow blond all the way to the other side of town.

"Hello, pretty ladies!" A man yelled as he saw the two coming towards him and his friend.

"Shut up, Bean, or I'll cut off your other testicle just like Hanji did" Annie stated. The man winced.

The other laughed "Still as ladylike as ever, Annie"

"You better shut the fuck up too, Sawny"

"Alright, alright. My apologies" He held his hands together and bowed slightly.

"So this is her, huh?" Bean asked as he walked around Christa. He pushed out his lower lip "Not bad"

Sawney spoke "She'll do perfectly. Small, blond, blue eyes; She'll go down a treat. You found a mighty replacement, Lionheart, she's way cuter than you were" his smile menacing as he grabbed Christa's face in one hand.

Bean poked her side before throwing his arm around her "Maybe I should break her in first?"

"Replacement? Breaking in? What are you talking about?" Christa asked.

The men laughed before they turned to Annie.

"Yeah, Annie, what are we talking about?" Bean asked sarcastically.

Annie looked at the ground in shame.

"Annie said you guys knew my father, a-and that you knew where he was" Christa was growing nervous.

"Did she now?" Sawney looked at Annie before looking back at Christa "Well, I don't remember her ever mentioning anything about your daddy to us" he grabbed her by her hair.

"Hey! Don't touch her!" Annie warned

"Here. Get lost" Bean tossed Annie a black back-pack "That's the agreement"

She opened it and looked inside.

"What's going on?" Christa asked.

"Your little friend here's played you" Sawney stated "We never knew your dad, sweet heart"

Bean released her only to throw his arm over Annie's shoulders "The little lady here isn't so little anymore and we have clients who only go for our little blonds. And you fit the bill, girly"

"But"

"You did well, Annie" Bean got her in a head-lock before pushing her away "Now. Get lost"

Sawney grabbed Christa's wrists with one hand before reaching into his pocket and pulling out a strip of long black plastic.

Annie watched as the two men laughed at Christa "I hope nobody misses you, Princess"

A tear rolled down her cheek.

Annie threw the bag to the ground, bundles of dollars falling out. She gritted her teeth and growled before kicking Sawney in the back of the knees.

"OUF!" he fell

"Hey!" Bean began to throw punches. Annie dodged flawlessly.

"Run, Christa!" She screamed as she planted a powerful punch to Beans gut "I'll hold them off!"

Christa was frozen to the spot with fear. She couldn't hear anything but her own heartbeat in her ears.

"FUCKING RUN, CHRISTA!" Those words cut through the silence and Christa wasted no time. She ran as fast as she could in whatever direction her feet would carry her. Tears were running down her face as she ran.

_How could I have been so stupid!? _She thought with gritted teeth. _Why did I believe her!? Why did I trust her!? I'm such a fucking idiot! Why would anyone know where my father is!? That bastard left! Why did I even want to look for him!? He didn't think I was worth sticking around for! And Annie… How could she!? I'm an idiot! A worthless fucking idiot!_

She stopped for a moment to catch her breath. Her chest heaving from the mixture of running and crying. She looked around. She had no clue where she was, she had never been to this side of town before.

_I'm worthless nobody wants me unless it's for their own benifit!_

She ran into a tall building…

_I've been played too many times! By people who couldn't give a shit about me!_

…And began to climb the stairs.

…..

She burst through the door to the roof. Her blond hair stuck to her tear ridden face. Mascara running down her cheeks as she made her way to the edge. She looked over.

_This is it. No one else is ever going to hurt me._

She took a deep breath before clamping her eyes shut and taking a step.

She felt nothing. No pain. Nothing.

She slowly opened one of her eyes "Huh?" followed by the second one.

She was leaning over the edge of the building at an impossible angle "What the?"

_What's happening? How?_

"Don't you dare" She heard someone whisper into her ear and felt an invisible force pushing her back.

She fell onto her backside on the roof "Huh!" The blond stood up, obviously scared and confused. "W-who's there?"

Christa looked around frantically but found no one and got no reply.

_I'm outa here!_

She hurried back towards the door ran down the stairs as quickly as her feet could carry her.

When she had reached the bottom she put her back against the wall. Her breathing heavy and her heart racing. She slid down the wall and sat on the ground, bursting into tears. She brought her knees to her chest and cried.

_Who saved me? What saved me?_

She realised what she was about to do on that roof top. She realised no one would ever know how it came about. She thought of her mother and whimpered "I'm sorry"

She wasn't sure how she was spared, but something or someone, somewhere didn't want her to die. Someone cared.

She wiped her tears and reached into the pocket of her jacket, pulling out her phone. She tapped in a number before holding it to her ear "Mom?... I don't know where I am" she began to cry all over again


	3. Help Is On The Way

**AN: This does have a bit of a religious theme (2 things I never like talking about = religion and politics) so if they go against your beliefs, sorry, it's just a story and I thought it would add a bit more depth to it... and it WILL make sense in later chapters**

* * *

Ymir's eyes shot open. She was on the ground in a dark and dingy alley. It was all part of her punishment, she had to live a human life, something she hadn't done in centuries.

She sighed and sat up, her skin burning where her wings once were. She looked at her body, she was in the clothes she had died in. She took an even deeper sigh. She was so used to being invisible but now she would stick out more than ever in her medieval farm wear. She needed to blend in if she had any hope of finding the blond girl. She closed her eyes and massaged her temple as she tried to come up with a plan.

"Geez! Another one!?"

She heard a voice to her right. She looked up. There was a short blond young man standing next to her. He was dressed in all black with a white collar. A door to the building she was sitting against was open behind him.

"Wh-Who are you?" she asked

"These tough times are hitting people hard. C'mon, let's get you inside" He said as he helped her to her feet and brought her inside. "I'm Fr. Arlert, but everybody calls me Armin, and who are you?" He sat her down at a table.

"Y-Ymir"

"Nice name. You hungry?"

Her stomach grumbled; she hadn't felt that sensation in centuries "Yeah" she hung her head

"Wait here, I'll get you something" he smiled.

She looked around the small room. It was a staff-room. A small kettle in the corner with a few packets of cookies on the counter. A picture hung on the wall with a candle underneath it. She examined it. It was a painting of a bearded man wearing a crown of thorns, holding a heart in his hands.

_The Saviour _She thought with a growl. She had ended up in a place that celebrated, in her opinion, a false Messiah. The Saviour never had to lift a finger when it came to the after-life, sure he was great when it came to giving humans life but when it came to taking it away, he passed the responsibility to the Perdition, her leader.

The Perdition then passed the right to kill onto his Demons. These were usually once humans who, for one reason or another, turned away from the Saviour during their lives. Ymir didn't remember much of her last human life, it was short- too short, sixteen years. She remembered being rebellious, but other than that, nothing much at all.

Armin came back in with a steaming bowl.

"I'm sorry, this was all that was left" he said placing it in front of her before grabbing a spoon from a drawer "Chicken soup" he smiled as he handed it to her.

She didn't say anything. She dipped the spoon in, collecting a small amount of the creamy liquid. She tentatively raised it to her lips and put it in her mouth. Hunger overcame her and she began to scoff down the rest of the soup.

She plopped the empty bowl in front of her and burped. She quickly raised her hands to her mouth with shocked eyes "Excuse me!"

He laughed a little "It's no worry. I take it as a sign that the food was good"

"Aye" she nodded.

"So you said your name's Ymir? Can't say we hear that name often 'round here. Where you from?"

"Uh" She wasn't sure how to answer, she couldn't remember where she was from… _Germany? No! Switzerland? Sweden! Yes!_

"Uh… Sw-Sweeden" she answered.

"Wow, you're a long way from home"

"You have no idea"

He smiled "Well, it's getting late. You look exhausted. There should be one last bed in the woman's dorm if you wish to spend the night"

"Please" she nodded

"There should be a box of clothes there too, just sift through it and take what you want" he said.

….

She made her way over to the box of clothes and sifted through it. She found a jacket, an old hockey jersey and a pair of jeans that just about fit, along with a scruffy looking pair of sneakers. She put on the jersey and jeans before carrying the shoes and jacket to the spare bed. She laid down and sighed.

_What am I going to do!? I can't kill that girl!? I barely know her name! Christa Renz… How did she have that effect on me? I've been doing this for six hundred years and no one's ever made me think twice like her. I need to find her, I need to see her again. I need to find out why I couldn't kill her._

She pulled the covers to under her chin and closed her eyes with a sigh.

_…._

**_BZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ_**

A bell sounded

"What!?" Ymir shot up. She looked around frantically. Women were clambering out of beds all around her. She wasn't sure what was going on.

"Hey, newbie!" She heard one of them call. She looked over. It was a girl no older than herself with shoulder length black hair and a red scarf "Breakfast" she gestured towards a large set of double doors where all the women were heading.

Ymir nodded and threw off the covers before putting on her sneakers and throwing on her not so new jacket. She got out of the bed and followed.

She entered a large cafeteria filled with people. She caught up to the girl with the red scarf.

"W-what is this place?" she asked

The girl looked at his with almost no expression "You don't know?"

Ymir looked at the girl dumbfounded

She exhaled "It's a homeless shelter… you're homeless" she stated as if it were obvious. She picked up a tray. Ymir copied her actions.

The girl continued "This is the Maria Centre Church"

"Oh… yeah, I knew that!" Ymir tried to brush off her ignorance. She had only ever seen death in the modern human world, she knew nothing about life "I'm Ymir" she held out her hand to the girl as they walked along the que.

"I'm not interested" The girl replied before turning to pick up two plates and placing a slice of toast on each.

"How did you know I was new?" Ymir ignored the girl's last statement

"Because, I've been coming here for the last seven years. I know everyone who walks through that door"

"Seven years? Why didn't you go somewhere else or do something else?"

"Because this town is my home, and I'd really rather not be having this conversation" The girl snapped

Ymir persisted "You must know this town pretty well then"-

"Are you even listening to me!?"

-"You could help me find… her" Ymir's eyes widened with hope "You could help me find Christa!"

"What!? What are you talking about!?"

Ymir picked up some bacon and put it on a plate "I'm looking for this girl; Christa Renz"-

"Never heard of her"

"No, but you do know this town"

"Who says I'll help?"

"Please"

"I've got to look after someone of my own" She shot a quick glance at a table. Ymir looked over. There was a boy sitting by himself with short dark hair and green eyes. He looked over at the girls and gave a little wave, a smile barely tugging at his mouth "I promised him I'd protect him" she whispered. Ymir understood.

Ymir sighed "If you won't help, can you at least spare some knowledge about this town?"

The girl looked back at her "Aye, I suppose"

They walked over to the table with the boy "Hi" he greeted them

The girl sat next to him and gave him one of the plates. Ymir sat opposite.

"I'm Eren" He held out his hand to her

"Ymir" she said shaking it

"You made a friend, Mikasa?" he let out a little laugh "I don't ever see you talking to anyone but me"

She turned slightly red "Shut up and eat" she turned to Ymir "So you want to find someone in this town, eh?"

"Aye" Ymir nodded

"Where does she live?"

"I don't know… I don't know anything about her except her name and what she looks like"

"Huh?" Eren looked up with a mouthful of food.

"I really need to find her. I need to see her again" Ymir dropped her head and stared at the food in front of her. "She's the reason I'm here"

Eren swallowed "We'll help you look for her"

Ymir looked at the boy. He had a determined look on his half-smiling face.

"Eren"-

"Mikasa, we have to help her" He turned to his friend "We can't keep living like this. We're barely surviving! We need to stand up for ourselves. It's been years, if they haven't found us by now then I'd say they've stopped looking. If we don't fight, then we cant win!"

"Eren, not so loud"-

"We're helping her!"

Mikasa sighed "Fine. You know that wherever you go, I'll go too"

Eren smiled and kissed her cheek "Aye"

Ymir wasn't sure of what just happened but they were going to help her so she wasn't going to question it. "Thank you"

The pair looked back at her "No problem" Eren smiled


	4. Chores and Phone-books

Christa was lying in her bed staring at the ceiling. She had stayed frozen there all night, she didn't get a wink of sleep. Her mind was too busy running over the events of the day, more-so the incident that took place on the roof of the apartment building.

_How? Why? What? Who?_

All the questions going through her thoughts. Her mind focused on the voice she heard

_"Don't you dare"_

It was raspy, coarse and undoubtedly female. She wasn't sure if she had actually heard it or if her imagination had run away with her. She huffed and replayed the sentence in her head.

A warm feeling overcame her; whether it was her subconscious, or a guardian angel, there was something in the world that wanted her in it too.

Christa had always had trouble making friends; she was naïve, small and easily manipulated for trusting almost everyone she met. People often took advantage of her and she rarely learned from her mistakes. She was usually alone unless people wanted something from her.

The closest thing she had to a friend was Sasha Braus who was a daughter of one of her mother's co-workers. Sasha wasn't exactly the brightest but she was harmless; she cared more about where her next meal was coming from rather than the next big trend. She would watch the food network religiously even though the girl had the cooking skills of a banana. Sasha never really concerned herself with people although she seemed to have a fondness for the small blue-eyed blond girl.

Christa thought over her life and realised that she needed change, she craved it, and she felt that the disembodied voice was going to help her attain it.

_But how do you find someone who doesn't exist?_

She sighed and rolled onto her side, grabbing one of the teddy-bears on her bed and clutching it to her chest.

…..

She went down stairs in her pyjamas to get breakfast.

Her mother was walking around the kitchen, cleaning while mumbling angrily under her breath huffing and hmph-ing every few seconds blowing stray strands of her blond hair out of her face. Aside from hair colour, Christa didn't really look like her mother at all. Her mother had often told her that she looked like her father, just cuter. She had never seen him before, not even a photograph of him. Other than Christa's existence, it was like he never existed.

Her mother noticed her "Good afternoon, young lady" she said with a stern face with her hands on her hips.

Christa didn't respond, she just made her way to the fridge and looked inside.

"There's no food. I have to get some groceries later. Mrs Kris- Carol, is coming over to keep an eye on you"

Christa sighed as she closed the fridge "I don't need a babysitter, mom"

"Oh, she's not babysitting, she's coming over to make sure you do all your chores and that you don't sneak out again. You're grounded, young lady, and I'll be damned if I leave you in this house alone"

Christa huffed and went searching through the cupboards for food.

"No computer, no T.V. no phone, no anything that can take your mind off of good old-fashioned house work. Now get dressed! It's two in the afternoon!"

Christa grunted before stomping back upstairs. She hadn't told her mother about Annie, Bean or Sawney, how she really ended up in that side of town or that she stood on the edge of a building. She thought it best to keep it to herself.

_I'll only get into more trouble… _She thought.

She entered her room and flopped back down on her bed, face first into her pillow. She lay there, perfectly still for a moment or two still playing the sentence in her mind

_"Don't you dare"_

She lifted her face and turned to look in the direction of her nightstand. She glanced over all her books that rested on it; tales of hero's and villain's, good and evil, angels and demons. Those were the stories she loved.

"Christa!" He mother called from the foot of the stairs "You better be getting dressed!"

She rolled off the bed before throwing on some old clothes. She went back down the stars where her mother stood, purse and car keys in hand.

"As soon as Carol arrives, I'm going, she should be here in a minute"

….

Ymir, Eren and Mikasa made their way through the town.

"So, she's a little blond girl"

"Yup"

"Wiiiiiiith blue eyes"- he squinted in concentration

"Mm-hmm"

"And goes by the name Of Christa Renz"

"You got it"

"Okay, at least we have that much to go on"

Mikasa snorted "It's not much"

"No but, how many times have you ever heard the name '_Renz_'? I'm sure if we look in a phone book or something we're bound to find her home in it somewhere" He spoke with confidence.

_Phone book? _Ymir thought. She hadn't adjusted to life in the twenty-first century. She knew things were new and modern in this time but she really never stopped to have a look around. She was an assassin; she came, she killed, she left.

"Let's try the phone-booth over there" he suggested as he pointed to a phone-booth across the street.

They ran across once the traffic had cleared and pulled back the squeaky door of the booth. Ymir jumped in and found the yellow paged book. She flicked through it franticly. She was halfway through the book when she realised

"I have no clue how to look through this thing!"

"Uh" Eren was rendered speechless

"You're never used a phone-book before?" Mikasa snickered

"Uh… no" Ymir mumbled.

Mikasa sighed "Move over, I'll see what I can do"

Ymir and Mikasa awkwardly shifted places.

"Okay" Mikasa prepared herself and dived into the book "Renz. Renz… Spelt R. E. N. Z.?" she asked

"Aye" Ymir nodded.

"Okay" her flicking stopped abruptly as she ran her finger down the page, reading each name that appeared.

Ymir waited anxiously.

"Right, there's a few of them here. There's a Michelle Renz who lives in Rose Walls, a Peter and Simon in Trost – that's just outside town – um, Marcus and Wendy in Stohess hills and Lillian on the Karanese Road" she stated "No Christa"

Ymir felt as if all hope was lost.

"Wait" Eren spoke "You said this girl was fifteen right?"

"Aye" Ymir sighed in defeat.

"Well she probably lives at home. Her parents or guardian or whatever would be listed, not her" he began to smile

Hope returned to Ymir's heart "So, what you're saying is"-

"She lives with one of the four houses mentioned!" Eren finished

"That's if her house is even listed here. They mightn't have a land-line phone" Mikasa was always the voice of the worst case scenario.

"Well, I have to try. I need to find her" Yrmir was defiant. She wasn't going to let Mikasa's negativity slow her down. She had six names and four homes to visit, all from opposite ends of the town it would seem, but she was going to try all of them until she found the girl she was looking for.

Mikasa tore out the page and held it in front of Ymir "Here, we've done all we can do. Good luck"

"Uh"

"Mikasa! We can't just leave her!" Eren protested "She doesn't know her way around the town"

"So, she can get a map!"

"We're going with her!" He argued

"No. We have to keep a low profile"

"We won't get caught helping her find someone"

Mikasa gritted her teeth "Fine. But if we get caught, Eren"-

"I know"

They looked at each other. They had reached an understanding.


	5. Finding her Found out

"So where is the closest?" Ymir asked

"Marcus and Wendy in Stohess Hills, from there it's easy to get to the Karanese road, then onto Maria Wall but we'd need to get a bus to Troist" Mikasa answered "We'll have to hurry if we want to make it back to the shelter in time for dinner"

"Aye" Ymir understood as she felt her stomach growl with hunger.

"I don't think we'll get them all done today" Eren sighed clutching his stomach

_He must be hungry too. _Ymir thought.

….

They stood outside the first house. The home of Marcus and Wendy Renz. Ymir could feel her heart thumping in her chest and her stomach doing knots.

_Marcus and Wendy, eh? Potential parents of Christa Renz She thought as she looked at the house._

It was quite a small blue house with three steps up to a wooden terrace. A small lawn at the front.

_W-what do I say? What can I say? 'Hi is Christa home? I was a demon who was sent to push her off a building but I didn't, instead I saved her ass because she made me feel… weird… so I didn't kill her, then I was banished from the underworld for not killing her so now I'm human with orders to kill her and go to prison but I don't think I will kill her, I just want to know why she made me feel weird. I was a demon for six hundred y-_

Mikasa nudged her "What are you waiting for?"

"I-I… um"

"Nervous?" Mikasa cocked an eyebrow playfully

"N-No!" Ymir folded her arms "Just hope we have the right house is all"

Mikasa put her hand on Ymir's back and pushed the girl forward "Only one way to find out"

Ymir was halfway between the house and the sidewalk. She looked back at the pair who had helped her.

"Good luck" Eren smiled "We'll be right here"

"Aye" Mikasa sighed

Ymir nodded and made her way towards the door. She took a deep breath, her heart pounding through her chest so hard she could feel it rising to the back of her throat.

She took the tree steps up to the terrace and lifted her hand to ring the doorbell. Her hand was shaking. She was almost disgusted with herself; she could take the lives of thousands of people without so much as batting an eyelid but coming face to face with a little girl that gave her a weird and foreign feeling in the pit of her stomach was nearly too much for her to handle.

She took a deep breath and straightened herself, dusting her tattered clothes, patting out the creases. She looked at the white door in front of her and again took a deep breath before knocking.

"One minute!" A female voice came from inside.

Ymir waited, feeling more awkward than she ever had before, not that she let it on; she came across as cool, calm and collected even though on the inside she was shitting herself

After a few moments someone came to the door.

"Hello" It was a brown haired woman of medium height.

"Uh, hi" Ymir responded, mentally high-fiving herself for making it this far without letting down her cool exterior.

"Can I help you?" The woman seemed impatient

"Um, I'm looking for"-

A baby wailed from somewhere in the house

"MARCUS!" the woman screamed back inside the house

"I GOT IT!" a male voice responded

The woman turned back to Ymir "Yeah?"

"I'm looking for Christa Renz? She doesn't live here, does she?" she leaned against the doorframe

"Nope, never heard of her" the woman answered

"Wendy!" A shout came from inside

"What!?"

"He doesn't want his bottle!"

The woman huffed and turned back to Ymir "Anything else you want?"

"Uh, no, no" Ymir's voice trailed off a little and the door slammed in her face.

She slouched in defeat and turned around. She gathered herself, stood up straight and marched back to the pair waiting for her

"Any luck?" Eren asked

Ymir shook her head "No"

"It's getting late. Dinner's at five at the shelter"

Ymir shot a quick look of desperation at her "Just one more house. Please"- she stopped herself, she wasn't going to allow herself to be weak.

"I'm sorry, Ymir. We should get back. She isn't going to disappear between now and tomorrow" Mikasa replied without expression.

Ymir went to argue.

"Trust me, you don't want to find her tonight" Mikasa added.

"Mikasa is right" Eren added "She knows what she's talking about"

Ymir was conflicted.

….

Christa dusted her hands off of one another and let out a relieved sigh. She had just finished all the chores set out by her mother.

Carol walked into the living room "Wow" she said as she looked around "This place looks great, Christa"

"Thanks" the girl wiped her brow.

"Your mom'll be happy"

"I hope so" the girl let out a small chuckle

She glanced at her watch "Your mom said that she wouldn't be back until after five, it's only four-thirty now, you can go watch some TV if you'd like? I won't tell her" the woman tapped her nose.

"Uh, no thanks, I think I might just go back to my room and read in bed, probably sleep a little later on; I didn't get much sleep last night"

"Alright then" the woman shrugged.

….

They had made it back to the shelter in time for dinner. Chicken soup followed by mashed potatoes, turkey and carrots.

Eren scoffed down his meal.

"You have the appetite of a titan" Mikasa had a small smile on her face.

Her smile kina scared Ymir. She had only really known this girl for a day but she had gathered that she wasn't really the smiling type, much like herself.

Eren smiled back at the dark haired girl with a mouth full of mashed potatoes. He swallowed "I need to keep up my strength" He turned to Ymir "So, tell us about yourself"

"Uh" she wasn't sure how to answer "My story's way too long to tell" She scratched the back of her head

"We've got nothin' but time" He smiled

"I don't know"

He gave her puppy eyes

She sighed "Fine, I- I was banished"

"Really?" Eren's eyes grew wide with interest "Why?"

"I-I broke something and got caught"

"What did you break?" He took another bite and chewed.

She looked down at her meal "Something that shouldn't have been broken, I can't exactly say"

"Why n"-

"Eren" Mikasa interrupted "would you mind going up and seeing if there are any carrots left. I'm still hungry" she pushed her plate towards him

It distracted him "Ha! And you said _I _had the appetiteof a titan" He picked up the plate and left.

"Sorry about him. He's so full of questions"

"It's understandable; a strange girl asking for your help, anyone would bound to want to know why"

"Hmm"

Ymir collected some carrots and potato on a fork before shovelling it into her mouth.

"What if there was someone who didn't need to ask any questions?"

Ymir squinted her eyes and knitted her brow "What are you talking about?"

"I know what you are" Mikasa whispered.

Ymir nearly choked. She coughed.

"I thought I was the only one"

"Uh, I don't know what you're talking about" Ymir looked her dead in the eye

"A demon" Mikasa whispered with a smile that was almost mischievous.

"Uh" Ymir's eyes grew wide

"They pulled off your wings, didn't they?"

Ymir still didn't answer

"I saw the scars on your back when you got changed last night. They heal pretty quickly"

"You watched me change?"

"I didn't mean to! You stood in front of me!"

"Uh, s-sorry"

Mikasa brushed off the apology "Aye. The scars from where your wings were, I have them too"

"What? You're a-a d-demon?"

"Aye! Well, I was, seven years ago" Her face was a little sterner

"Carrots for Mikasa!" He sat back down.

"We'll talk later" Mikasa almost smiled.

Eren shot glances at the two of them "Do I even want to know?"

They looked at each other and in unison stated "Girl stuff"


	6. When two Demons Meet

"So"

"So…"

Ymir and Mikasa sat opposite each other on their beds. It was awkward. Ymir never imagined meeting another demon in the human realm. She wasn't sure how to respond. Her mind was racing with questions.

"Mikas"-

"I was nine years old… when I died" She had her head down "It was a car crash; the twenty-fourth of June, nineteen-sixty-five… my father was driving. I can't remember how but, we ended up hitting a tree and I flew out the front windshield" She chuckled slightly "No such thing as seat-belts back then… I remember waking up in the afterlife scared and confused. I knew I had turned away from the Saviour, my whole family had but I was the only one to die. I remember the training; becoming a Sprite, **(side note; sprites were the first stage in becoming a demon. They would usually run around causing messes and moving objects; like when you put your keys on the counter but you find them later under your bed) **A Hunter, **(loured animals to the roads)** and all the rest. Eren was supposed to be my first human kill; himself and his family were meant to die in a car-crash seven years ago. I remember the car heading towards the truck and the look on his face; how scared he was. I protected him, but his parents died… I was banished, like you, to find him and kill him, but I couldn't. He was angry at the world for taking his family. I vowed to protect him for as long as he lives. We became friends, his grandparents took me in, cared for me… A few years ago another demon tracked us down and tried to kill us both, it was then that I told him what I was, and what I had done… he forgave me and we've been hiding here ever since" A tear fell from her face "How about you?" She asked without looking up.

"Eh" Ymir wasn't sure how to respond

"What's your story?" Mikasa continued

"I-I don't remember how I died. It was over six hundred years ago"

"So you were a demon for a long time then?"

"Aye. I was cold and cruel. Killing became nothing to me... until I was sent to kill her"

"Christa?"

"Mmm" She nodded "She stood on the edge of a building. I was supposed to push her off, instead I pushed her back onto the roof"

"Why?" Mikasa looked up "If you've been a demon for that long, so used to killing, why did you save her?"

There was a pause "I don't know… That's why I'm looking for her; to find out"

"Will you kill her?" Mikasa asked expressionless

"I doubt it. If I couldn't kill her when I had the chance, I doubt I'll do it now… She sent a weird feeling through me, one I hadn't felt in a very long time… I can't explain it… I hovered in front of her and saw into her eyes" She raised a hand to her chest "Felt like my heart skipped a beat for a second. I need to find out what that feeling was. I need to feel it again, and if seeing her is the only way, then I'll find her, no matter how long it takes" She clenched her fist.

There was another short silence before Ymir spoke again "I have one question for you, Mikasa?"

Mikasa raised an eyebrow.

"Why has a demon been living in a place devoted to the Saviour?"

A door to the side creaked open.

"Ymir? Mikasa? What are you two still doing awake?" Armin stepped in rubbing his eyes.

The two looked at each other again "Girl stuff"

Armin sighed "It's two in the morning!" as he walked over to them. He sat on the end of Mikasa's bed "Although it is nice to see you've made a friend, Mikasa" He smiled

"Uh"

"You and Eren have been coming here for the past three years and you have always kept to yourselves" He looked at Ymir "I don't know what you did to win them over, Ymir" He chuckled lightly.

"I didn't really do anything" Ymir scratched the back of her head.

"Well, regardless of what you did, I'm glad. You three are the biggest mystery in this place. It's like you never existed before showing up here"

Ymir lowered her head "Well"-

"Oh, no" Armin waved his hand "I don't want to know. You're here now, that's all that matters. Ymir, I'll tell you exactly what I told Mikasa the day she showed up here; I'll look after you, this place is your home for as long as you need it" He smiled

"Thank you, Father A"-

"Ah-ah-ah" He wagged a finger "What did I tell you to call me?"

"Armin" She smiled

"Aye" He stood up "Now get some sleep, the pair of you, before you wake up everyone else…. Good night"

He left closing the door behind himself

"That's why" Mikasa whispered

"Huh?"

"Armin's the reason we stay here… He's kinda become our guardian. He's kind and fair. He doesn't ask questions. He accepts people for who they are. He isn't devoted to the Saviour, he's devoted to people and helping them" She crawled under the covers "Goodnight, Ymir"

"Goodnight, MIkasa"

…..

_There were people in medieval dress._

_"Burn her!"_

_"She goes against God!"_

_With axes, swords and flaming torches._

_"She goes against nature!"_

_She was looking around frantically, eyes unable to focus until she heard a voice_

_"She tried to kiss me!"_

_Her eyes shot to where the voice was coming from. A short blond woman stood before her, held in a woman's arms._

_"She tried to kiss our daughter!" A man shouted._

_"She claimed that she loved me!" The blond shouted again._

_"What woman falls in love with another woman!?"_

_"She's a demon!"_

_"She's Satan!"_

_"Kill her!" An older tanned woman with freckles heckled_

_Ymir felt her own weak voice "Mother?"_

_"I'd rather have no daughter than one possessed by Satan!"_

_Ymir closed her eyes and then suddenly…_

"Ymir?... Ymir!?"

"Huh?" She opened her eyes.

"You okay?" Mikasa was standing over her "Looked like you were having a nightmare"

She sat up, covered in sweat "A nightmare"

_That's all it was, _She thought.

"Get up. Breakfast" Mikasa nodded


	7. Smooth moves

"Day two I the search of Christa Renz" Eren smiled as he shovelled scrambled egg into his mouth.

"Aye" Ymir tried to sound as enthusiastic as he did. She couldn't get the dream out of her mind.

_Who was that blond girl? And those people? Were they yelling at me? Is… is that how I died? No… It was just a dream, a nightmare, nothing more… but it felt so real. What's going on?_

She must've looked worried because Eren extended his arm and placed his hand over hers

"Don't worry, we'll find her" He swallowed his breakfast with a determined grin.

She smiled back.

"Eat up, Ymir. You don't want to have a growling stomach in front of her, do you?" Mikasa cocked an eyebrow

"Mmm" Ymir nodded with a smile and began to eat her breakfast.

"You two seem to be on better terms" Eren commented

"Aye. We had a bit of girl talk. Nothing you need to worry yourself about, you wouldn't understand" Mikasa nudged him playfully.

Mikasa really was in a good mood. It was weird. Usually she'd be expressionless, emotionless; she was only ever able to force a smile for Eren's sake, but today she seemed genuinely happy.

…..

The three set about walking the town.

"The Karanese Road. That's our first stop? Right?" Eren's green eyes sparkled with anticipation

"Aye. Lillian Renz" Mikasa confirmed.

Ymir was filled with mixed emotions; she wanted with all her heart to find this girl but she had no clue what to do if she were actually face to face with her.

_What should I say? Should I lie? Should I tell her what I am? No… what should I tell her? Who am I? Why am I..?_

….

Mikasa stopped walking and turned to face a house

"Is this the place?" Ymir asked

"Aye" Mikasa nodded.

Ymir looked at the house; upper middle-class, white picket fence, flag waving on the front lawn. White shingled, typically American.

"Are you sure?" Ymir asked.

"100%" She replied.

"Alright" Ymir said sceptically.

"Just go check" She nudged the tall girl.

Ymir sighed and kept her cool exterior. She sauntered up to the front door, fighting her heart, which was trying to leap out of her chest with anxiety and anticipation.

She got to the front door and rang the doorbell. It wasn't long before someone answered.

A short blond woman answered the door "Hello"

"Um, hi. Is this Lillian Renz's house?"

The woman nodded "That's me"

"Um, well, I'm looking for someone, Christa"-

The woman sighed "I told her, no friends until after she's grounded. That girl never listens to me"

"So, she lives here?" Ymir felt her hear flutter for a split second.

"Aye, but I'm afraid she's grounded…" She squinted her eyes at the girl searching for a name

"Oh,Y-Ymir" The tall brunette stated. She could feel herself getting light headed. Her heart thumping faster than before. She felt fire-works erupt in her brain. Her palms sweaty, knees weak.

"Ymir" The woman shrugged "Never heard her mention you… Although she never mentions any of her friends to me"- she became sarcastic –"I am only her mother after all"

Ymir scratched the back of her neck nervously. She couldn't believe they had the right house. Christa was only a few steps away from her. "Sooooo, can I see her?" her voice getting higher with each word.

"I'm afraid she can't see anyone, unless you're doing a project or schoolwork" She looked Ymir up and down; lack of a back pack, no school books "And I don't think that's what you came for"

"Please, it'll only take a few minutes" Ymir pleaded

"No. I'm sorry, you'll have to talk to her in school tomorrow" The woman began to close the door

"But"-

"Sorry" The woman shrugged and the door finally clicked shut.

"Please!" Ymir shouted to a closed door.

After a few moments of no response, Ymir sighed and turned around. "Dammit" She walked back to her friends.

"No luck?" Eren asked

"She's in there" Ymir stated "But she's 'grounded'" Ymir wasn't sure what that word meant, she hadn't lived in the modern world.

"So you're just going to give up?" Eren asked.

Ymir cocked an eyebrow menacingly "I didn't say that"

"Huh?"

"What are you planning?" Mikasa was nervous

"I don't know, but I'm going to see her, come hell or highwater"

…

"Ymir, this is a fucking stupid idea!" Mikasa stood at the base of a tree shouting up at the tall brunette

"Nonsense! It's a fucking great idea!" She retorted

"You'll get caught!" Eren seconded Mikasa's point of view.

"Pfft!" She waved her hand at them "I've been sneaky my whole existence, now is no exception"

She edged her way along a branch.

"How do you even know she'll be in that room!?" Mikasa whispered aggressively

"I don't!" Ymir replied

Eren and Mikasa looked at each other

"You can fault her on many things, but at least she's honest" Eren sighed.

She got closer to the window and extended her neck to look in.

There she was, Christa, sitting on her bed, earphones in and a book in front of her. Ymir felt that same feeling again, it was like a drug, she needed more of it.

"I see her!"

"Good! Now you've done that, get down!"

"Just let me get a closer look"

This girl was a drug, a drug only for Ymir. She heightened the brunettes senses, sharpened her sight, hearing, smell, taste, touch. She took in the blonde's presence, noticing everything about her; the way her bangs dangled over her eyes as she read, the way her legs crossed as her toes wiggled to the beat of whatever song she was listening to. Ymir was captivated by her, enthralled with her, obsessed with her. She crawled closer and closer to the window.

"Ymir!" Mikasa called.

"Shhhh!" She lifted her index finger to her lips as she looked down at her dark haired friends. She looked back at the window and that's when it happened. Their eyes met. Christa's wide blue eyes taking in the sight that was Ymir. Ymir taking in that she had been caught. She lost her footing "Oh, shit!" She fell.

"Ymir!" Mikasa ran to her side.

The front door of the house opened.

"Fuck!" Eren exclaimed as he tugged MIkasa's arm

"Go!" Ymir said to them "You two, run"

"Are you sure" Mikasa asked as she held Ymir's head

"Go! Before I change my mind!"

Mikasa didn't want to leave

"I'll see you at dinner" Ymir assured her

"Okay" Mikasa nodded as she got to her feet

Mikasa and Eren ran.

"Hey!" A voice called

Ymir struggled to sit up. She had the wind knocked out of her.

A pair of legs stood next to her. She looked up.

"C-Christa" Ymir gulped

The blond was standing over her, an angry expression with an umbrella ready to swing if Ymir made one wrong move.

Ymir's hands flew up to protect herself

"Who are you!?" Christa demanded to know "What were you doing in my tree!?"

"Please, put the umbrella down!" Ymir pleaded

"Not until after you answer my questions! Who are you!?"

"YMIR! My name's Ymir!"

"What were you doing in my tree!?"

"Uh-um"

Christa jolted

"Ah!" Ymir jumped

"Answer me!"

"I- I was"-

"You were spying on me!"

"Huh!?"

"Did Annie send you!? Sawney? Bean?" She gripped the umbrella tighter

"Who!? I don't know any of these people!"

_She's a lot tougher than what I thought she'd be _Ymir thought to herself.

"Then why were you in the tree looking at me!?"

"Because I needed to see you!" Ymir blurted

"You don't even know me!" Christa argued

"I met you once, not too long ago"

"I think I'd remember meeting someone like you"

Ymir looked into the blonde's eyes "Please, I didn't mean to scare you. I-I just really wanted to see you, Christa"

"How do you know my name!?" Her umbrella hand twitched

"I JUST DO, OKAY!"

"Christa!" Her mother called from the front door "What did I tell you about friends and being grounded!?"

"But she's not my f"-

"Don't you dare"

Christa looked back at the brunette on the ground.

_Don't you dare_

"What did you say?"

"D-Don't you dare…?"

"Why do you sound like my guardian a"-

"Christa Historia Renz! You better get your ass back inside right now" Her mother yelled

"Coming!" She shouted back. Christa lowered the umbrella and extended her hand to Ymir. Ymir took in cautiously and got to her feet.

She brushed herself off.

"Ymir, eh?" Christa asked

"Aye" She nodded as she patted down her jersey.

"I have to go inside" She said with a small smile as she turned

"Wait" Ymir grabbed the girls arm.

"Tonight. Meet me here at 2am"


End file.
